


A Valentine's Day Surprise

by AmberSkye



Series: Christine and Erik make a long distance relationship work and other adventures [2]
Category: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra | Phantom of the Opera & Related Fandoms
Genre: F/M, Feelings, christine is here to fix this, erik is touch-starved, just feelings and talking, lots of feelings, there is no plot here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-24
Updated: 2018-02-24
Packaged: 2019-03-23 10:38:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13785741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmberSkye/pseuds/AmberSkye
Summary: Erik comes up with the idea of returning the surprise visit Christine paid her. He's completely out of his element, but Christine has got this. It's a day for music, talking, and -- to Meg's (and maybe our) disappointment -- not nearly enough nudity. For now.





	A Valentine's Day Surprise

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into 中文 available: [【中文翻译】A Valentine's Day Surprise 情人节惊喜](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14231034) by [SueandRabbit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SueandRabbit/pseuds/SueandRabbit)



> This is probably a series now. Oh yeah, this was totally posted on Valentine's Day. Definitely not late.
> 
> What is airport security? Don't worry about it.

This was a truly terrible idea. Nadir had exhausted all his resources getting it to happen, and Erik should have saved them for something more pressing. But Nadir had insisted, the old fool, and Erik had ever been one to give into whatever those he cared about told him to do, whether it would hurt him or not. He’d said as much, and Nadir had given him such a pitying and condescending look Erik hadn’t even been able to press the case.

He was on an airplane. A private jet, in fact, that was going to drop him off at LAX in a special priority-business-if-i-told-you-I-would-have-to-kill-you lane.

And then he took an Uber to get to Christine’s apartment. It was very anticlimactic. 

He called Nadir, standing on the sidewalk, gripping his phone in one hand hard enough to make the case creak and his carry-on in the other, in which a smushed rose and melting box of chocolates resided. Nadir picked up, said, “Get in there, you idiot,” and hung up on him. Well, that answered that. He texted Nadir ‘We are no longer friends.’

Then he licked his lips, cleared his throat, and knocked on the door. Was this what high school boys felt like when it was the night of prom? He was fishing through the bag to pull out his gifts when the door swung open wide, and a woman with dark skin and hair that was not Christine cried, “Sorel-- oh shit. Oh. I was totally gonna kiss you, I thought you were my girlfriend. Alright. Oh hey, Erik!” she clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh, it's a secret, right? Or else she would have cleaned the toilets and kicked me out already. You’re in luck, though, my girlfriend will be here to pick me up soon.” 

Erik hadn’t had to say a word yet, which was good, because he was still recovering from the shock of the ball of enthusiasm that was Meg. He cleared his throat again, just to have something to do. “Yes, it is a secret. Is Christine here?” He remembered his manners a moment after and added, “Not that it is unpleasant to meet you, Meg.”  
“Oh, you do have a voice like melted chocolate, how unfair.” Christine thought he had a voice like melted chocolate? He felt his face heat up and -- well, he wasn’t grateful for the mask, but it was useful in that moment. “Come on in. I see Sorelli’s car now, so I’ll just step out. She’s at her desk, just down the hall there. Waiting for you to come online, I’m sure. Don’t keep her waiting. Condoms and lube are in my bedside table drawer, in the Christmas sock with a reindeer on it. Stay safe, kids,” she said, and Erik opened his mouth in horror but the door was already closed. 

He looked around the apartment. Everywhere were traces of the two girls, a blend that worked surprisingly well. It smelled like a variety of scented candles and lemon cleaner. He felt rooted to the spot and almost called Nadir again, friendship revoked or not, but then he heard footsteps and Christine was looking him in the face. Mask, really.

She looked the picture of beauty, of Aphrodite captured candidly, with hair in waves down her back, a tank top, fuzzy pajama pants, and socks printed with french fries printed on them. His love was a woman who looked lovely when first waking up, when crying, when beaming up at him without his mask on, which she was helping him become accustomed to when they spoke online nightly. Her lips parted. “I thought I heard your voice, but figured I was going crazy.”   
“Certainly not. I. . .I am sorry, to drop in on you so suddenly. I only couldn’t wait three more months, and wanted to see you in person. Nadir told me today would be the day to do it.” 

Her lips twitched, and she began to laugh and on light feet ran to him, throwing her arms around him. Erik made a small noise he hoped she would brush off at his lungs being compressed, but it was really more keeping tears back at the idea that she would run up to him, like so many had run from him in the past. That she would laugh at seeing him out of joy, not ridicule. That he believed it to be so without her needing to reassure him. He held her tightly back, letting her warmth seep into his bones and her love with it. He drew strength from his love just by being near her.

“My love, it is so good to see you,” he said into the top of her head, which smelled like citrus shampoo and her.  
“You have no idea,” she said, and sounded teary.  
“Are you okay?” he asked immediately, pulling away, looking for hurts.  
“I’m amazing, now that you’re here. Oh, I don’t mean to be a crybaby, it’s just. . .” she took a steadying breath and laid her head on his chest. He closed his eyes and basked in the ability to give comfort to someone. “You came all this way, and it couldn’t have been easy for you, and with that bag I know you did it just for a short time, all for me.”   
“I would have walked here on foot for you, Christine. You must know that.”  
“It’s a lot to take in. But if you ever had to walk to meet me, then I would meet you in the middle,” she told him with a little sniff. He couldn’t help pulling back to press a kiss to her lips then. She sighed into him and tasted like cinnamon toothpaste because ‘mint makes coffee nasty’ as she kissed him back.  
“I brought you something,” he murmured into her.  
“Presents? For me?” She pulled back with a grin. He handed her the flower first, then the chocolate, prepared to make excuses for their condition but then she was keeping his lips busy, and he forgot what he was going to say when she whisked the items away and brought the flower back in a tall coffee mug of water and presented him the cherry filled chocolate, already eating half of the coconut one.   
“Christine, have I ever told you how wonderful you are?”  
“It’s nice to hear,” she replied with a laugh. Erik laughed as well, her easy banter with him was one of the many reasons he loved her.

Christine’s phone buzzed. “Oh, whoops. Let me take this, I’ve got to tell a friend there was a change of plans.” Erik suddenly felt cold, and Christine shook her head quickly, “It’s just bowling with friends, nothing I’d be missed doing. They’ll be happy I’m not there to kick their butts.” 

She answered the phone, and chatted away a few minutes. He couldn’t hear a word of it, a new obstacle appearing in his head. “What’s wrong, Erik?”   
He hadn’t realized she had hung up. “If you do move to New York after you graduate, you would be leaving your friends behind.”   
She nodded slowly. “I know, Erik. I’ve already thought about that for a long time. It’s going to be really hard for me, I attached myself to them pretty hard once I found them, after I had to move here. But some of them are moving, too, and that’s just how life works. You go where it’ll be best for you to be, where you can grow the most and be the most happy. I’d be miserable if I couldn’t be with you, even if everyone in California was my best friend. So it’s nothing to worry about for now.”   
Erik embraced her. “Come on, it seems like we’re going to be cuddling for awhile. My bed is actually clean, so let’s lay down.” 

They lay on her bed, soft and piled with pillows and blankets of clashing colors, her head on his chest and pressing her body along his. Christine shifted to be able to look at him and smiled softly. “How far did you want to take things today?” She flushed slightly at the question, but didn’t retract it, and Erik was left floundering.   
“Ah- what would you prefer?”  
“None of that, now. I’ll tell you after you set the limits.”  
Erik was silent a long time. He knew what he wanted to say, but forcing the words out was the hard part. “I find myself still uncomfortable with the idea of. . .intimate relations. I would like to--” he stared at the bed, and Christine seemed in no hurry to rush him, only looking on with mild eyes. “Undress you,” he managed, and looked anywhere but at her face.  
She kissed the bottom of his jaw. “That sounds wonderful to me, but only if you let me undress you too. Let me turn on the heater, it’ll be cold once we’re out of these layers. I have an idea.” 

He listened to her turn the heater up with a few light clicks, heard the whirr of the machine begin, and kept listening to her padded feet enter another room just to have something to do other than panic. She returned with a bottle and he caught a pleasant scent as she held it up. “Massage oil. I usually just use it in the bath, but I’m going to put those wonderful hands of yours to work. You first, though.” She set the bottle next to the bed and pushed his jacket off. Her hands were warm as they ran down the shirt underneath, hooking fingers under the edges and pulling up. He let his shirt be removed, and took his time with hers, watching soft, warm skin be revealed to him. She wore a somewhat faded pink sports bra, and he noticed her flush lightly as he looked and brought his eyes up to meet hers. 

“If I stare, it’s only because you’re so beautiful.”   
She relaxed and drew patterns on his chest, inching downwards to his waistband. “These off too, then lie on your stomach,” she instructed, and he complied silently, stretching out in nothing but underwear. He jumped a little when she straddled his upper thighs, putting not uncomfortable weight on the area. “Now relax,” she ordered with a light laugh, “or you’ll defeat the purpose.” 

There was a click as the bottle opened, and a few seconds before her hands made contact with his shoulders. He hadn’t had the smallest idea what to expect, but the warm, smooth pressure on tense muscles was so good he moaned. She hummed happily at the response, making him sigh in relief, and continued. She massaged his neck, down both arms, back up to his shoulder blades and he melted into the bed. He’d never anything like this, especially not by someone like Christine. It was really a stunning feeling, the weight of her warmth and the feel of her hands on him. He had a slight undercurrent of nerves, as he subconsciously waited for her to pull away or reject him. He knew it wouldn’t happen, but it seemed his mind did not.

There were scars, when she got lower. She stopped, her hand hovering above them and he tensed. “You don’t have to-”   
She cut him off by pressing a kiss to them. “It’s not you that’s the problem, I was just going to make sure they don’t hurt to massage.”   
“N-no, not at all.”   
She continued massaging, adding more of the oil. He thought it might be sticky on his skin, but it had been absorbed easily leaving nothing but the familiar scent of citrus that was so soothing to him now.

By the time she reached his legs, his nerves and most coherent thoughts were gone as he just basked in the feeling and the sound of Christine humming, he wasn’t sure when she had started. He was only drawn back to reality when she shifted herself off to the side. “My turn.”   
“Of course, my love,” he responded, but he had no idea what to do. He copied her movements to sit on her legs. “I’m not hurting you?”   
She giggled. “No, Erik. Feels nice.” Spurred into confidence, he began massaging her shoulders. She sighed deeply, the air leaving her slowly, leaving her muscles much easier to work. “You’re so good at this,” she murmured. “You’re not allowed to leave, you have to stay and give me back rubs every day.”   
Erik laughed at that. “Soon, my dear. When you graduate you will have all the back rubs you desire.”   
“I want that in writing, so I can wave the paper under your nose when you tell me no.” 

She was joking, but he couldn’t imagine not wanting to give her this. It felt almost as good to give as to receive, the mere ability to touch her wherever he wanted was almost beyond him, and she was so responsive both vocally and physically.   
After too short a time, she stretched and rolled over. “That was really great, Erik. I don’t really want to move. Want to watch a movie? You’re way behind on the classics that everyone has to watch.”  
He nodded. “”You will have to pick, though.”   
“Don’t worry, I’ve been thinking about it. Blade Runner is first, I think you’ll like it a lot. Scoot over a little-” she arranged her many pillows to give them something to lean back against, and set up the movie. “Alright. Want a snack? I’m going to get more of that chocolate,” she said with a grin.   
“Something to drink.” 

And they settled in to watch a movie. It was as simple a thing as when she had come to his home, and he sighed happily, pulling her closer. She was happy to comply. He hadn’t thought he would be focusing much on the movie with Christine so close to him, and in an unfamiliar place, but he was drawn into the plot. “You were right, that was a good choice.”   
“Thought so!”   
Erik looked at Christine and chuckled. “I must admit, I have no idea what to do now.”   
“Well, you’ll be here overnight?”   
“No, I’m afraid not. I’ll have to be back at the airport at eight.”  
Christine checked her phone and furrowed her brows. “Six hours. That’s not too bad. This might. . .sound silly since we can do it anytime, but I love to hear you play in person, if you want.”   
His muse was an angel, indeed. “That sounds almost as perfect as your voice.”   
“Oh my gosh, Erik,” she squeaked, blushing red. He grinned and they both laughed. “Was that scripted or did you just come up with that?”  
“What, you don’t trust my wit? I’ll have you know I don’t need any help flirting with you. You’re inspiring.”  
“Oh? I inspire you? What do I inspire you to do?” Christine asked suggestively.   
He answered with a kiss, so it was some time before they made it to her violin. It was time well spent, in his opinion.

Time flew when they were together and there was music. She sang for him, less of a voice lesson and more serenading, and he replied in kind with a song of his own. Sipping water and sitting across his lap on an armchair she asked, “Are you going to publish that song you wrote, that I heard on Christmas?”  
“Hmm, I am not sure. What’s your opinion?”  
“I think you should, it deserves to be recognized. But if it’s personal, that’s perfectly understandable.”  
If he didn’t publish it, it would be a secret just for them. But if he did. . . “I like the idea of the whole world knowing how wonderful and inspiring you are.”   
“Again with the inspiring,” Christine said with a smile. He only shrugged with a smile. “Well, I doubt it’s the whole world, but it’s still a lot of recognition. You should, Erik, even if that means I’ll have to beat off fans.”   
That surprised a laugh from him. He hadn’t thought of that. Music was anonymous in some ways, but with a name attached, he would draw attention. “I’ll have to think about it. But what about yourself? You would have adoring fans following your footsteps if you were to publicize your voice.”   
He wouldn’t say aloud how jealous the idea made him.   
“I’ve got a portfolio, enough to get into a job after college. I can’t really say the idea isn’t appealing, but I’m happy to wait awhile.” She paused for a moment then blurted out, “We should start a YouTube channel.”   
“What?”   
“You play, I’ll sing. Original pieces or not. It can be anonymous, just audio, if we want.”   
“I’ll. . .think about it.” It did sound like it would help Christine’s name be known. And it would make Nadir stop talking about his ‘talent being wasted’. 

They talked until Christine checked her phone again and buried her face into Erik’s chest and groaned. He peeked over her shoulder to see the time and sighed himself. “I should feed you before you have to go. Anything you want special?”   
“Whatever you have. And I can cook, this time.”  
She thought a moment. “Chicken pot pie. We somehow have all the stuff for it. I know a really simple way to make it that’s really, really good. But you’ll be on vegetable chopping duty.”   
“If I must,” he said with as much of a put-upon tone as he could.   
“You must,” she said, pushing him to his feet.

Dinner was delicious, of course, although the edges of the pie got a little burnt from them getting distracted by talking and. . .other things. It occurred to him that he would very much like to carry her to her bedroom and keep her busy for a few hours. It was, of course, too late in the evening to do so, but he still trailed kisses down her neck and tasted her as she sighed into him and tightened her hands in the fabric of his shirt. “You’re a tease,” she accused.   
“Not at all, I mean on following through. Next time.”   
Christine groaned. Even though he shared the feeling, he laughed. “Come on, then, I’ll drive you to the airport. Is LAX still as crazy as I remember?”  
“Absolutely.”   
“Ugh. Here’s to trying to not die or murder people in this traffic.”   
“Always a good goal to aim for,” he said dryly. She snorted lightly, and they were off. 

Kissing Christine in the airport waiting for his flight to arrive deserved a song all to itself, it seemed. When it was time for him to go, he had to practically drag himself away from her. “Three months.”   
“Three months,” she agreed.


End file.
